• Perennial
• Succulent, ornamental plant
• Blooms: June–August.
• Drought and frost resistant
The heather is a mountain plant that grows naturally in the Alps and other highlands of Europe, where it has adapted to poor, rocky and sunny places. It forms dense, low rosettes of leaves that allow it to survive in extreme conditions - both drought and cold. Due to this property, the plant has long been considered a "living roof" in nature.
In manor gardens, buttercups were used in rock gardens, rockeries, and in gaps between walls where other plants would not grow. They were valued for their stability of form and minimal maintenance requirements.
In rural homesteads, they are usually planted on roofs or near stone walls, in the belief that they protect the house from lightning - hence the Lithuanian name.
Today, heather is widely used for the structure of dry flower beds and rock gardens.
